Confronting Fear

Exegol

I wish you were here now
I miss your soul
But you lost your light
When the darkness called
But I stand here waiting
The last to fall

Last to Fall - Starset

A/N So, rewrote this chapter probably 4 times and still couldn't get it to come out how I wanted. I admit, its not my best work but I figured we've all seen TROS so you should have a pretty good idea of what's happening.

"WELCOME TO EXEGOL!"

Poe's shouted words came in through the comm system.

"Son of a bitch!" Ben shouted, as he fired at a black and red TIE, the Bright Star's left wing a smoking mess.

"We're almost there!" Rey reassured him, steadying the craft as best she could with its remaining functioning wing.

And indeed they were, the monolith's dark form illuminated by the blue lightning and the flash of red and green lasers.

One of the First Order TIEs escorting them went down in a flash of green and red, a Resistance X-wing moving into its unlikely comrade's position. Rey felt the pilot's life fade from existence. And not just his, all around them the lives of friend and foe alike blinked out.

She cast out her awareness, seeking out the familiar colorful auras of those she held especially dear. It was with relief she found Chewy's green aura next to Lando's violet one, Poe's sparking orange one flying solo but not too far from Finn's bright white essence and Rose's soft blue.

In what was not one of her better landings she skidded to the ground, leaving a deep gouge in the planet's lifeless surface. And lifeless it was, as lifeless as Ambria had been. With a shudder she surveyed the wreckage of her beautiful ship. It was with a deep sadness that she realized it would probably never leave its current resting spot. Thankfully, she had left Deo with Leia. Losing the droid would have made the loss cut even deeper.

To her left, Ben ignited his mother's blue saber, motioning her towards the floating monolith's opening. They needed to get out of the open before the TIEs came back around.

Igniting her own saber for its golden light, she followed Ben into the darkness.

Ben laid a reassuring hand on Rey's shoulder as the floor began to descend underneath them, nervously checking his belt that the Dagger of Mortis was still there.

"I'm here," he said through the bond.

The downward journey ended in an enormous cavern lit by the flickering blue sparks spit out by the deep fissures cut into the planet's surface.

Ben entwined his free hand with her's, holding his blue saber in a defensive stance with his right. "This way."

The air hung heavy with dark secrets as Ben led her through the corridor, past statues of ancient Sith warriors standing in stark contrast to the very modern lab equipment that glowed here and there. The oppressive quiet was disrupted by faint chanting in the distance, chanting that grew louder with each step until the long tunnel gave way to what appeared to an amphitheater, the stands filled with chanting hooded figures.

A terrible voice spoke from the shadows, quiet yet somehow loud in her head. "Long have I waited,"spoke the man from her nightmares, "for my grandchild to come home!" he finished as though announcing the victor in a prize fight.